The Wizard and the Warrior Princess
by Kenny0208
Summary: Voldemort travels back to Ancient Greece in search of Ambrosia, the food of the gods, which can turn any person that consumes it into a god. Starts in the summer after Half-Blood Prince.
1. Voldemort, The Snake God

_**Voldemort, The Snake God**_

Severus Snape entered a darkened room within Malfoy Manor. The room was bare except for a few chairs and a round table upon which stood some unused candles and a book. The Dark Lord Voldemort stood at the opposite side of the room staring out a window into the night beyond.

"You wanted to see me, my lord?"

"Severus, come in," Voldemort turned to survey who he believed to be his most faithful servant, "How is our experiment coming along?"

"We are nearing completion, my lord. We are merely testing it for functionality. We will know by tonight if it is ready," Snape replied, before asking, "If I may ask, for what purpose will we need it?"

Voldemort's mouth twitched into an almost smile that would make a cat's fur stand, "Since we have nearly conquered all of wizarding Britain, I have found more time to catch up on my reading," he pushed the book across the table toward Snape. As Snape walked forward and picked the book up, he saw that it was a book on Ancient Greece, "It is really very interesting. Do you know that there once existed beings whose powers far exceeded those of any wizard? They could reverse death, create terrifying beasts to do their bidding, and even punish whole societies with just a thought. Most of all, they are ageless and immortal. They were called gods,"

"Yes, my lord, I have heard of such beings. Muggles and wizards alike have passed down stories of them through the centuries."

Voldemort sat at the chair that was facing where Snape was standing, "You doubt their existence, Severus?"

"I believe that you are the closest to a god that is alive today," Snape lied while expertly shielding his mind.

"The closest, yes; but that is not good enough!" In his master's fury, Snape did not even blink; he kept his face as emotionless as ever, "But there is something that can grant me immortality and godhood."

"What might that be, my lord?" asked Snape.

"There is a substance known to the ancient Greeks as Ambrosia."

"The nourishment of the gods," said Snape in understanding, "My lord, witches and wizards all over the world have spent centuries trying to find Ambrosia. It has never been found."

That creepy almost-smile was back on the Dark Lord's face, "which is why we must travel back to a time when both gods and ambrosia still existed."

Later that night:

In the cellar of Malfoy Manor, there was a solitary figure lying in a heap on the floor covered in dirty and torn robes. There was no window for Draco Malfoy to tell what time of day it was, but it had to be late, since it had been several hours since Wormtail had brought him his bread and water.

He had been down here since the night that he was unable to kill Dumbledore. The Dark Lord punished him severely, and then ordered him thrown down here until he saw fit to release him. His parents begged Voldemort to release him, but their pleas fell on deaf ears. Mrs. Malfoy took it upon herself to bring her son extra food and water whenever she could, though.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of the lock clanging before the door swung open. Urging his aching body into a sitting position, so as to see who was paying him this late night visit.

"Draco," said Snape, in the same cold manner he used when teaching at Hogwarts. He then pulled his wand and aimed at the door, "_Muffliato,_" then he pointed it directly at Draco, who flinched as he saw it coming, "_Crucio!_"

Seized by pain, all he could do was scream out; toss his cool Malfoy image. It only lasted a few seconds before Snape lifted the curse and spoke again, "You know why we have to do this, Draco. We cannot have anyone in our ranks whose convictions are in question. This will continue until you are ready to pledge yourself fully to your master." When Draco didn't speak, but only glared at his former teacher, the man cursed him again. It went on for about an hour like this; he would be cursed, each time he kept it on longer; in between curses, he would ask if Draco would pledge himself to the Dark Lord. Draco could not answer though.

There was a time when he though it a high honor to have that blasted tattoo on his arm. He thought he would find glory in siding with Voldemort. Then he saw what he would have to do to find favor in the Dark Lord, and he started to get scared. He was no murderer. And Dumbledore, he had tried to kill the man several times, yet he still offered sanctuary to him and his mother. Now it was time to make a decision. He was terrified of dying, but what kind of life would it be bowing down to that monster.

Finally, Snape lifted the curse and asked one last time, "What do you choose? And remember that there's no way that you can shield your mind after what you have just endured, so I will know if you are lying."

Draco took a minute to catch his breath. Then he stood up as dignified as possible, "Just… go ahead… and kill me… cuz I'll never bow down… to him!" He exclaimed between breaths and twinges of pain. He braced himself for the inevitable green light, but was surprised to see that Snape's face had softened.

"In that case, there is no time to lose," he pulled a vial from beneath his robes, "Drink this,"

Draco eyed the dark green potion suspiciously, but downed it when he recognized it as a simple pain relief potion.

"Forgive me, Draco. It is a necessary but loathsome part of my cover to follow the Dark Lord's orders. Plus I had to determine if you were really opposed to the Dark Lord."

"You mean you're a _spy_?" asked Draco in shock. Snape snorted a little in amusement.

"May as well not be as the only man I reported to is now dead. And all of his allies believe me a murderer," his face suddenly became serious as he pulled a bag from under his robes as well, "There is not much time to explain," he pulled a wand from the bag, which Draco immediately recognized as his own, which was then handed to him. He then pulled out an ordinary muggle garden gnome, "This is a portkey. It will take you to the end of a muggle street. Look for the house with the number four on it. You will find Harry Potter there…"

"Whoah, wait a minute. I may not want to join the Dark Lord, but it sounds as if you expect me to join Potter. That would be _suicide_!"

Snape sighed, "Draco, if you ever want to be truly free, then you must put your faith in Harry Potter to defeat the Dark Lord, and it is now up to you to take him the objects in this bag. There are things in here that are key to defeating the Dark Lord."

"But Potter _hates_ me!"

"Then you will both have to merely _get over it_!" he snarled, impatient with teenage squabbling, though he wasn't one to talk, "Potter will keep you safe for the time being. There is a note in the bag that will explain everything that he needs to know."

Draco reluctantly took the bag and the gnome.

"There are heavy wards around the house that Potter is staying in. Even the Dark Lord cannot enter. But as long as you have no ill intention toward anyone in the house, you will be able to enter untroubled."

"What about my parents? Won't he suspect them of freeing me? And they'll know that you were the last one with me."

"I already have it planned out. The Dark Lord need only check their memories to tell that they did not free you, and I have already confounded Wormtail. It will be said that he left the door unlocked and fell asleep. He will have a false memory stating as much. Now get ready, the portkey will activate in a few seconds."

Draco was scared of leaving his parents and aiding the enemy of a man that he greatly feared. But at least he'd be away from old snake-face's clutches.

"Thank you," said Draco, just before he felt that familiar tug behind his naval.

I'm surprised no one's thought of this idea before. Voldemort craves infinite power and immortality, so it makes sense that he would want to gain that through becoming BTWa god.

BTW: I know that what Snape did to Draco was kinda harsh, but I thought it'd be realistic that he has to play along with the torure game until he finds out if Draco's a good guy or not.

Can't wait to see what people think of this.


	2. Unexpected Guest

**Unexpected Guest**

There was a loud _crack_ sound as Draco Malfoy appeared at the end of Privet Drive clutching his wand in one hand, the garden gnome portkey in the other, with a bag slung over his shoulder.

Harry heard the _crack_ all the way from his bedroom at Number Four Privet Drive and was currently looking out his window for the source of the noise. He was surprised to see none other than Draco Malfoy wandering around outside as though he were looking for something. When he looked at Harry's house, his eyes widened slightly before he began walking toward it. Harry immediately jumped up and slammed out of his room and down the stairs.

"Boy, what do you mean by running around and making all of that racket!" his uncle bellowed from the living room. When he didn't get an answer, but instead heard the front door slamming open, he, his wife, and Dudley got up to follow Harry to see what was going on.

Harry ran out into the yard to see Malfoy standing mere feet away, "_Expelliarmus!_" he shouted; Draco's wand flew from his hand and Harry caught it.

"BOY!" Harry heard coming from the doorway. He looked to see an angry Uncle Vernon and a terrified Petunia and Dudley, "What is the meaning of this? The neighbors might have seen!"

"He's with Voldemort!" Harry shouted back, causing his relatives to stare wide-eyed at the blonde.

"I'm not with the Dark Lord, Potter. I came here to see you."

"Liar! You stood by while Snape killed Dumbledore; you yourself tried to kill Dumbledore! You're no better a murdering death eater!"

"You've got to believe me, Potter, I thought I wanted to be on that side until I saw what it was like. You've no idea what they've put me through since that night."

Harry considered what the blonde said, but did not lower his own wand.

"If it makes you feel any better, you're the only one with a wand; I have no way of resisting, so just hear me out."

Finally Harry said, "Put down the bag,"

Draco did as he was told, dropping the bag at arm's length in front of him. Harry waved his wand and the bag levitated towards him.

"In the house," said Harry, gesturing with his wand before fixing it back on Malfoy. Malfoy walked toward the front door, Harry following with his wand constantly on the blonde.

"I thought you couldn't use it outside school?" said Dudley ash Harry passed his stunned relatives.

"Seeing as we're at war, the Ministry's temporarily lifted the ban on underage magic for defensive purposes."

Harry directed the blonde wizard into the kitchen, "Sit,"

It was then that Harry got a good look at Malfoy under the bright lights of the kitchen, "You look like Hell."

"So would you if you were punished every day for three weeks."

"So they've been torturing you?"

"Bloody barbarians," said Uncle Vernon; the Dursleys had followed the two wizards into the kitchen.

"How dare you, you filthy muggle!" said Draco to the fat older man.

"Don't worry about him, Malfoy, he's always like that." He casually pointed his wand at his uncle, who jumped about a foot in the air, "_Silencio._"

"What have you done to him?" asked a frantic Aunt Petunia, as her husband was furiously moving his lips, yet no sound came out.

"It's just a silencing charm; don't even think about it," he added, pointing his wand back at Vernon, whos hands were outstretched in the direction of his nephew's neck.

"How did you escape?"

"Snape helped me,"

Harry grew furious at the sound of the name, "And _why_ would he help you escape if you were going to come straight to me?"

"He's a spy..."

"_Don't_ give me that! He killed Dumbledore!"

"He said that everything that you need for your mission is in the bag and there's also a not explaining everything."

Harry glared at him before reaching into the bag and pulling the note out.

_Potter,_

_Contrary to popular belief, I was on Dumbledore's side through and through. Dumbledore and I planned his death since we learned that he would die anyway of the very same curse that blackened his hand._

There was more to the note, but Harry chose not to read past that first paragraph, "I'll need to ask what Ron and Hermione think before I trust you or Snape completely."

There was a bang, and both wizards turned to see Vernon pulling his fist out of a whole in the wall. He began mouthing various obscenities and something about "NO MORE WIZARDS!"

"You don't really have a choice. You see if we let Voldemort win, then it won't matter how new your car is, or how green you lawn is or how well you keep your house. You will be slaves, or you'll be dead. So I suggest you let me do what it is that I have to do to keep that from happening!"

Vernon still looked furious, but he stayed 'silent' on the matter.

"Aunt Petunia, could you please get the guest room ready?" Petunia was about to argue, but one glance at Harry's wand and she stomped out of the room and up the stairs.

Draco and Harry sat in the kitchen for thirty uncomfortable minutes. Vernon and Dudley were both back in the sitting room with the television on, though neither was really paying attention to the show. Finally, Aunt Petunia came back down.

"The guest room is ready. You know where it is; now both of you out of my kitchen,"

Harry showed Draco up the stairs to the guest room. Draco looked around the small yet comfortable room with his usual sneer, inspecting for dust. Harry retrieved a set of his own clothes so that Malfoy could get cleaned up.

"Take these; The bathroom is the next door to the left,"

Malfoy took the clothes, "Thank you," he said stiffly.

"I'm going to keep your wand. Don't try to sneak it back in the night because you'll never find it," Draco just glared at him, "At least I'm going to lock you in here,"

Harry shut the door behind him, to come face to face with Dudley.

"Are you really in the middle of a war?"

"Yes,"

"And you have to kill the guy that killed your parents?"

"Yes,"

"And you might die doing it?"

"It's possible," said Harry, coolly.

Dudley looked away ashamedly, "I'm sorry,"

Harry was surprised by Dudley's response, but did not show it. He patted Dudley on the shoulder, "Don't worry. I've almost died every year since I started Hogwarts." He left a confused Dudley and walked into his own room. He got two pieces of parchment and a quill from his trunk and began writing to his friends.

_I need both of you to come here tomorrow. It is too much to explain in a letter, but it may have something to do with our mission._

Harry addressed each letter to Ron and Hermione and walked over to Hedwig's cage. Hedwig backed to the other side of the cage and turned her head in opposite direction.

"I'm sorry girl, but I can't let you out all the time. It's too dangerous. But I can get you to take these to Ron and Hermione."

Hedwig's head turned slowly to him, eyes narrowed. She waited a few seconds before giving in and sticking her leg out.

"Thanks, girl. When you're done delivering, just stay with one of them. They'll bring you back tomorrow. I don't want you outside more than necessary."

Without so much as a nip to his finger, she took off out the window, "Yeah, I love you too," he said sarcastically. He then laid down in his bed for the night.

Not too much happening yet. There's still lots to do before they make the trip to Ancient Greece. Xena will show up in one of the next two chapters.


	3. A New Mission

_**A New Mission**_

He stood silently as the boat took him across the lake to the small island within the cave. When it bumped lightly on the rock edge, he climbed up onto the island with all the grace of a serpent. Looking around, it seemed as if nothing had changed since he had last been here. That thought changed when he stepped over to the basin and found it empty.

Harry Potter woke from his dream, no his vision when he felt the searing pain shooting through his scar. He began thrashing and screaming as the pain became worse. Suddenly he felt hands on his shoulders, shaking him.

"Potter, Potter!" Draco raised his voice over the other boy's screaming, "Potter, wake up!"

Harry fought against him for a minute until he became aware enough to realize that there was no threat.

His scar still ached. He reached up a hand to touch it as he said, "He's angry," in a quiet voice.

"Who's angry?" he heard someone ask.

His eyes shot open as he realized who was in the room with him. Malfoy was standing next to his bed, a mixture of concern and annoyance on his face. Looking past Malfoy, he saw the Dursleys crowded in his doorway. His aunt was pale, and his uncle was angry.

"What do you mean screaming at the top of your lungs and waking us up like that boy?" he yelled.

"It's nothing. Go back to bed," said Harry. They were going to argue, but Harry reached under his pillow for his wand. With a quick squeal, his aunt and uncle fled the scene. Dudley, however, stepped further into the room and stood next to Malfoy.

"What was it, Harry?" asked Dudley, concerned.

"Really, I'm fine," Harry stated stubbornly. The other two weren't convinced, but they knew they would get no more from him, so they turned and left the room.

Harry took his pillow and pressed it into his face, trying unsuccessfully to block out what he had just seen. He rolled over and tried to let sleep claim him once more.

When next he awoke, it seemed far too soon, it was to his uncle bellowing, "BOY!"

Harry, in his attempt to roll over and sit up, rolled himself right off the bed with a loud _THUD_ and a curse. Snatching up his wand and stowing it in his back pocket, he stepped out the door and down the stairs.

"What!" he yelled annoyed at the rude awakening. He walked down the hall and into the dining room to see Vernon, Petunia, Dudley and Malfoy, all dressed and eating.

"Get the door!"

Harry stomped over to the door and opened it. He was instantly attacked by a creature with bushy brown hair. Oh, no it was just…

"Hermione," Harry gasped, out of breathe from the hug.

"Oh, Harry, I was so worried when I got your letter. I thought something bad had happened," she said, letting go of him.

"Why exactly would you think that? I just said that I needed you here right away,"

"It's just with the war and everything that's been happening I've been expecting the worst around every corner,"

"Obviously he's alright," said Ron exasperated as he came in behind Hermione.

"Ron," said Harry with a grin as he gave his best friend a hug and a pat on the back.

"So what is it you've brought us here for?" asked Ron.

"I had a guest drop in last night…" began Harry, just as the door to the kitchen opened and Malfoy stepped out to see what was going on.

Suddenly, Harry was knocked aside as Ron lunged at Malfoy, backing him into a wall with a forearm pressing on his throat, while his other hand reached for his wand.

"Ron, calm down," said Hermione as she and tried pulling the red head off of their school nemesis.

"Ron, he's not here to attack us," said Harry, "He's unarmed. I took his wand when he got here."

Ron eased up a bit and then backed away, stowing his wand.

"What's he _doing_ here?" asked Ron gruffly, not taking his eyes off the blonde.

"For you information, Weasley, I was given the chance to join the Dark Lord, and I refused to take it," said the blonde, rubbing his neck and heading back into the kitchen to avoid further assault.

"Is that true?" asked Hermione, looking at Harry.

"I'm still not sure whether to believe him or not. But like I said, I took his wand," said Harry, "He also says that Snape helped him escape."

"Snape?" Hermione repeated in disbelief.

"And he sent us some bag. I haven't looked through it yet; I was waiting for you two," he said, "But before we get to that, I had a dream early this morning."

"You did?" asked Hermione, "What did you see?"

"I saw Voldemort," this earned a flinch from Ron, "He was checking on the locket in the cave. He knows it's gone."

"Oh no," said Hermione, "What if he adds extra protection to the rest of them. It'd be almost impossible to find them."

"It can't be helped. Right now we need to see if Malfoy is telling the truth. If he is and Snape really is on our side, he may have sent us something from Dumbledore."

"Alright, let's hurry up and do what we have to do," said Hermione.

"Alright, meet me in my room," he pointed them up the stairs as he went into the dining room to fetch Malfoy.

"Malfoy, we need you upstairs," Draco looked angry at being ordered around but kept silent as he stood from his seat. Petunia and Vernon both looked relieved to not have the wizard in their kitchen anymore. Dudley seemed slightly disappointed.

"Sit," said Harry when he and Malfoy entered his room. Hermione and Ron were already sitting in two of the three conjured chairs that weren't there before.

"I'm not a house-elf, Potter!"

There was a sharp intake of breathe and Harry looked over to see Hermione glaring at Malfoy.

Ignoring her, he went to his bed and lifted the floorboard underneath. He came up with the satchel, and Malfoy's wand, and sat on the bed.

"Snape wrote us a letter that he sent along with the satchel. I started reading it last night, but I wanted to wait for you two before I continued," he pulled the letter out and unfurled it, and then began to read out loud.

_Potter,_

_Contrary to popular belief, I was on Dumbledore's side through and through. Dumbledore and I planned his death since we learned that he would die anyway of the very same curse that blackened his hand._

"Dumbledore was going to die anyway?" asked Hermione.

"Maybe, but I'm still not convinced if he's on our side yet," said Harry. He then continued reading.

_If you are reading this letter it means only that Draco Malfoy has refused the Dark Lord and I was able to smuggle him out of the Dark Lord's clutches._

_Unless you lack any sense at all, you are currently questioning if Mr. Malfoy and myself are telling the truth. It is easy enough to verify. I am using a special ink. When using this ink, one can only write facts. If a falsehood is written, then the ink will vanish as it dries. There is a charm that is used to detect it; no doubt Granger will know it._

At this, Harry, Ron and Malfoy all looked at Hermione, "Do you know it, Hermione?" asked Ron.

"Yes, it's simple enough," she reached a hand out for the parchment and pulled out her wand. She recited the spell while waving her wand over the contents of the letter. The words began to glow with a light purple light, which then became gold, "I can't believe it," said Hermione.

"What?" Harry and Ron asked simultaneously.

"It's all true."

They all sat in silence and absorbed what they just heard.

"He's still a git," said Ron ad Harry took the parchment back.

_I sent with Mr. Malfoy a satchel full of items that you will need on the quest that Professor Dumbledore has left for you. Some of these, I had to intercept from the Ministry. You are most welcome._

Harry rolled his eyes at the sarcastic tone of the letter.

_The first few items were left to you and your friends in Professor Dumbledore's will. His Deluminator is left to Mr. Weasley. I'm sure that he can avoid blowing himself up in learning how to use it. _

As he read, he reached into the satchel and pulled said item from it and handed it to Ron.

"What is it?" he asked, holding up the item.

"How am I supposed to know?" asked Harry. Ron then pressed a button, and the light from the lamp and the ceiling both flew into the Deluminator.

"Cool," said Ron, releasing the balls of light. Harry continued with the letter.

_Next, his copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard is left to Ms. Granger. A book, how surprising._

Harry handed Hermione the book. She flipped through a few pages before shutting it and nodding for Harry to continue.

_Finally, to you, Mr. Potter, he left the snitch that you caught in your first Hogwarts Quidditch match, and the sword of Godric Gryffindor. I trust you are old enough to know not to run with it._

"Does he think that I'm five or something?" asked Harry angrily as Ron pulled out the snitch and sword for him.

"Maybe mentally," said Malfoy who had been snickering the whole time at his professor's remarks. He earned himself another three glares.

_Also in the satchel is Professor Dumbledore's wand. I could not leave it in his tomb, lest someone come looking for it. It is more powerful and more dangerous than any other wand. It should prove useful in future. As Mr. Malfoy disarmed Professor Dumbledore that night on the astronomy tower, it should respond to him._

Harry took the wand out and examined it. It was a dark color with carvings of elder berries along the handle and shaft. As he held it, he could feel the tingle of power coming from the wand. He began to feel some grief over the loss of his mentor while holding his wand.

"What's so special about it?" asked Ron.

"I don't know. It doesn't seem any different from an ordinary wand,"

"Well, what are you waiting for? Hand it over," said Malfoy, a hint of greed in his voice.

"There's no way I'm letting you run loose with some all-powerful wand," said Harry.

"Do you forget the beginning of the letter so soon?" asked Malfoy, "I'm on the same side as you."

"You may have defied Voldemort, but that doesn't not mean you're on my side," said Harry, "Don't forget that if you want to survive this war, you're kind of dependent on us."

Malfoy crossed his arms with a huff, "Can I at least have my own wand back?"

Harry looked hesitant, but Hermione intervened, "Come on, Harry, as much as you hate to, if we're to work together, we've got to learn to trust him."

"Fine," said Harry, tossing the wand back to its owner.

"Yes!" said Malfoy, inspecting his wand for dust and polishing it with his own breathe and a shirt sleeve. Harry shook his head and finished the letter.

_This last part is very important. Barely a fortnight ago, the Dark Lord became fascinated by myths based in Ancient Greece. His fascination is bordering on obsession. He dispatched a group of Death Eaters to track down a set of artifacts known as the Xena Scrolls. Their significance is a complete mystery to me. The Dark Lord, however, sought them out most zealously._

_I believe that you are familiar with a certain room in the Department of Mysteries, in which time is studied. An operative within the Department of Mysteries recently stole a set of plans for the Dark Lord. These plans are for a ritual that was recently developed after years of experiments; to allow one to travel back in time, farther than any wizard has ever been before. He intends to invade Ancient Greece, and discover the location of Ambrosia. If you are not familiar with Ambrosia, I suggest you ask Granger, she'll most likely know. I have no idea how the scrolls factor into that plan, but if the Dark Lord wants them, it can't be good._

_I was able to obtain a copy of the instructions for the ritual to send to you. Though it has not been tested, we haven't any time to waste. You must follow him back in time._

_The Dark Lord must not succeed. You are our only hope. God help us all._

_Severus Snape_

"He's going back in time?" asked Ron in slight confusion.

"Sounds like it. And he wants to find this Ambrosia thing. Do you know anything about Ancient Greece, Hermione?" asked Harry.

"Of course, Greek mythology used to fascinate me."

"Enlighten us Granger," said Malfoy.

"Well, there are tales of many different gods and heroes accomplishing great feats. Some gods would take an active role in either helping or punishing the people that worshipped them. Some of them would even mate with mortals, which resulted in offspring known as demi-gods, which would become the focus of many heroic stories."

"Any chance that one of those stories told of Ambrosia?" asked Harry.

"It's said to be the nourishment of the gods,"

"You mean it's their food?" asked Ron. She nodded her head, "Why would You-Know-Who want it?"

"According to the myths, if a mortal were to ingest Ambrosia, then they would become a god themselves. But none of it is real. I'm surprised that he's wasting his time like this."

"Wait, Hermione, what if it is real?" asked Harry.

"They're just myths, Harry," replied Hermione.

"Yeah, but aren't all myths based in some fact?"

"Harry, you don't really believe in some old fairy tales do you?"

"I don't know. But my entire childhood I would hear stories that the teachers would read us at school, then come back here just to be told that none of it is real. There was no such thing as magic. But then all of that changed when I went to Hogwarts. What if this is real too?" he asked.

Hermione was about to say something, but Harry cut her off, "And wasn't the Chamber of Secrets just a myth too? But we found it. And even if it isn't real, Voldemort believes it is. The muggles back then wouldn't stand a chance if he attacks them. Neither do the ones today, for that matter, but muggles today have guns and bombs to fight back with. They will be slaughtered. And he might drastically change history. You told me yourself that awful things happen when people meddle with time." Harry was breathing hard from his rant, but Hermione seemed to be thinking about his words.

Just then, for the second time that morning, Harry's scar erupted in pain.

"Harry!" Hermione and Ron were at his side as he clutched his forehead in pain. Malfoy just looked on, confused.

"What's wrong, mate? What do you see?" asked Ron.

"He knows about the ring, too."

Sometime later, Snape was looking over some handwritten notes in his study. Suddenly, there was the _crack_ of apparition. He winced internally when he looked up to see his 'master', but his face and thoughts betrayed nothing.

"My Lord," said Snape politely as he stood to greet the evil one.

"We need to leave now," said Voldemort.

Snape was taken aback, "I thought that the ritual needed to be tested first."

"We haven't the time, Severus!" Voldemort scolded, "We must go through with my plan tonight."

Severus bowed his head, "Yes, my lord."

"We leave in two hours' time. Gather my death eaters."

Two figures were sitting tucked away at a corner table in an inn at the center of a small village. One was a small, blonde girl who was clapping merrily as she watched the rest of the villagers celebrate. There had been a wedding in town earlier that day. The other, a muscular brunette, sat back lazily, her feet resting on the table in front of her. To those who didn't know her, she was bored with the festivities. But the blonde knew her well enough to know she was keeping vigilant for any sign of trouble.

"Could you loosen up a bit, Xena? This village has been uncommonly gracious to us. There hasn't been so much as a rude remark since we got here," the blonde pleaded.

Xena rolled her eyes as she said, "It's when a village is being 'uncommonly gracious' that I feel the need to keep my guard up most. You see, the minute you stop looking for trouble is usually when it finds you."

"Fine, suit yourself,"

Just then, there were the sounds of screams coming from outside. Before Gabrielle even left her seat, Xena was out the front door, investigating the chaos around her. Several houses were on fire. People were running about the streets, trying to find safety while tripping over dead bodies. There were flashes of colored light were flying everywhere. Bits of wood went flying wherever they hit. She dodged a green flash that came from her left; looking in that direction, she saw a group of people dressed in black robes with white masks. The flashes of light were coming from sticks in their hands.

"By the gods!" said Gabrielle, gasping as she saw one of the green lights hit one of the villagers. He fell immediately and didn't get back up.

"I told you so," said Xena, pulling her sword from the sheath hanging from her back. She began running toward the group of hooded people, sword in her right hand, chakram in her left.

"AIY-AIY-AIY-AIY-AIY-AI!"

I changed the part of this chapter about the death eaters finding the chakram and sword, instead they find the Xena Scrolls, because I recently saw the Xena Scrolls episode and I thought it'd be more interesting if they were to use them instead.

Also I thought it made more sense that they stole the time-travel ritual from the Department of Mysteries instead of Snape inventing it, because his specialty is potions.


	4. The Muggle Woman

**The Muggle Woman**

"AIY-AIY-AIY-AIY-AIY-AI!"

Xena threw her chakram, where it ricocheted off a nearby building before knocking into one of the masked strangers and then ricocheting again and taking out two more. When it returned to her hand, she jumped up in the air, flipping three times before landing in front of them before they even saw her coming.

"Hello there. Allow me to welcome you to the village," she said cheekily; her sword was raised.

They stared at her in slight shock before they all began firing at her. She dodged the multi-colored beams of light as she began stabbing through her attackers with her sword.

Elsewhere, another of the masked men was torturing one of the villagers. His victim was writhing in pain on the ground.

"Excuse me," said Gabrielle, tapping him on the shoulder.

He turned around to look at her. Gabrielle swung her staff, knocking the stick out of his hand.

"My stick is bigger," she brought the staff down across his head, knocking him out.

A jet of green light flew by her shoulder. She turned around and confronted the robed person, hitting him in the stomach with her staff before swinging from the side, knocking him out of her way. She swung low at another, knocking his feet out from under him.

"Aiy-ah!" Xena called out as she flipped over another of the masked men. She twirled back around, slicing him across the chest.

Looking around for more opponents, she spotted one pointing his stick at Gabrielle, who was busy fighting two more of them.

Xena threw her chakram, which cut off the man's hand that held his stick, causing him to howl out in pain.

Then came a loud _crack!_ "Fools! You were chosen by the Dark Lord himself and you can't handle two muggle women!"

Xena turned to see a crazed-looking woman with sunken eyes and wild, unkempt hair. She walked up to the strange woman to confront her, sword and chakram still in hand.

"Leave this village now and you won't be hurt," said Xena as Gabrielle moved to her side, holding her staff protectively in front of herself.

"You dare to give me orders, _muggle_!" the woman screamed.

"Oh, she dares," said Gabrielle cockily.

"_Crucio_!" the woman shouted while pointing her stick at Gabrielle.

Gabrielle fell to the ground, twitching and screaming in agony.

"Gabrielle!" Xena shouted, kneeling at her friend's side. Seeing nothing tangible that was causing her anguish, Xena jumped up and kicked out at the woman, knocking the stick out of her hand, then brought her fist to the woman's face.

"Ahh!" the woman screamed as she fell to the ground, clutching her bloody nose.

"You should have listened in the first place," Xena scolded the woman as she helped Gabrielle to her feet, "Now who are you and why did you attack this village?"

"You will hear nothing from me, you filthy muggle. You will be severely tortured and killed for this when my master hears of it."

"I have ways of making you talk," Xena took a step forward, but the woman disappeared with a terrified look on her face and a sharp _crack_ ringing in the air. Even more _cracks_ followed and Xena looked around to see that all of the men remaining alive had followed their mistress.

"How were they able to do all that?" asked Gabrielle, still shaken from what the woman did to her.

"I don't know. I've never seen the likes of it, except maybe from a god. But the gods aren't this showy and they would put up a better fight," Gabrielle shrugged and nodded. Xena nudged one of the dead attackers with her foot, "We'd better keep an eye out for these guys,"

They both went to help regroup the villagers and to tend to the wounded, unaware of the trouble that was currently brewing.

Harry descended the stairs and went to the front door when he heard the bell ringing.

"Who is it?" he asked, pressing his ear to the door.

"It's us, Harry dear," he heard Mrs. Weasley's voice on the other side. Harry's hand immediately went for the latch, but he thought better of it, "How do I know if it's really you?"

"Let us handle it, mum," he heard one of the twins, "You gave Fred and I the money to start our joke shop at the end of our sixth year."

There was a gasp, "So that's how you got the building," Mrs. Weasley said. Harry grinned and opened the door. Mrs. Weasley swept him into a suffocating hug, "It's so good to see you, Harry."

"What are you all doing here?" he asked, seeing that the twins, Bill and Ginny had all accompanied her. Tonks, Lupin and Mad-Eye were there as well. He hugged Tonks and Ginny and shook hands with the rest.

"Ron left us a note telling us he was coming here, and that it was urgent. We were worried," said Ginny.

"But did you have to assemble a guard?" he asked, eyeing them all.

The twins shrugged and Mrs. Weasley answered, "You can't be too careful these days. We thought they'd be helpful if something serious had happened."

"Who's at the door, boy?" Uncle Vernon yelled as he walked into the slightly crowded entryway, Petunia at his shoulder. They both stared wide-eyed at the group.

"Oh, Vernon, Petunia," said Mrs. Weasley, her eyes narrowed, "I've been very much looking forward to seeing the both of you. We met briefly the summer before last, do you remember?"

Both Dursleys nodded, becoming nervous.

"Well, since you're all here, we may as well go to the sitting room and we can talk. I'll go fetch the others from upstairs," Harry said, before going back upstairs. Ginny followed.

The wizards and the Dursleys all stood awkwardly for a moment, except for Mrs. Weasley, who glared daggers at the Dursleys.

"Well, it's likely we'll all be here for dinner. Perhaps Petunia and I should start on dinner," said Mrs. Weasley, still glaring, "Come, Petunia," she said, grabbing Petunia's arm and pulling her toward the kitchen. She looked pleadingly at her husband, as if asking for help. He looked as though he was about to say something, but decided against it when he saw the group of full-grown wizards still in the room with him.

Bellatrix's screams echoed throughout the forest where the death eaters made camp, only ceasing when the Dark Lord lifted his wand.

"Tell me, Bellatrix," he said in a threatening voice, "how is it that you were driven off by a _muggle woman_?"

Bellatrix tried to cat her breath, "This- muggle- she was a very skilled warrior."

"_That is no excuse!_" Voldemort screamed, turning his wand back on the woman. He released her from the curse again after twenty seconds of agony.

"Please, My Lord- she struck down three of our own- before we noticed she was there, and then- she moved too fast for us to curse her. Please- please forgive me!" she was nearly in hysterics by this time.

Voldemort looked down on her in disgust, before turning away from her and addressing the rest of his death eaters.

"We continue as planned. We must establish our dominance over the muggles of this land and begin our search for the ambrosia."

"My Lord," Severus spoke up.

"What is it, Severus?" Voldemort asked coldly.

"What should we do about the muggle woman?"

"If she should interfere again, then you will capture her and bring her here. I will deal with her personally." He swept back into his tent, his robes dragging silently on the ground.


	5. The Xena Scrolls

_**The Xena Scrolls**_

It was silent in the forest. Feet and hooves barely made a sound as Xena rode Argo at a slow pace and Gabrielle walked alongside.

"It's strange," said Gabrielle.

"What?" Xena asked.

"Why haven't we seen any animals? There should be birds, squirrels, _something_."

"Someone must've scared them off."

"Or some_thing_," said Gabrielle. Xena chuckled slightly.

They went on for a while longer until they came to a river. Xena stopped Argo and climbed down from her saddle. Leading the horse to the river to drink, she said, "It's getting late. We'll stop here for the night."

"I'll go gather some firewood," said Gabrielle.

"Don't get too far."

"I won't."

Gabrielle walked through the forest, but still following the river, collecting dried twigs and lumps of wood. She gathered an armful of wood and was ready to make her way back when she was suddenly pulled toward a large tree. She dropped the wood as she was spun around to face Xena.

"What's wrong, Xena?" Gabrielle. Xena held up a hand to let her know to be quiet. It was then that she heard the sound of distant voices.

Peeking from behind the tree, they saw a pair of black-robed men walking in their direction. Xena ran up the tree and caught the lowest branch.

"I don't see why we have to use these anti-apparition wards. It's not like anyone from the Order is going to drop in on us," said one of the disgruntled death eaters, performing a non-verbal incantation as he waved his wand in the air.

"If I was you, I wouldn't let the dark lord hear me questioning his orders," said the other.

"All I'm saying is that these primitives don't stand a chance against us if they find our camp. There's no need for these protective enchantments."

"There's need if the dark lord says there is. Now stop complaining and do as you're told!" the other scolded as he waved his own wand.

"Oh, boys!" Both of them jumped at the sound of the voice; with their wands raised, they began looking around for the source, "Up here."

They both looked up to see Xena high above them in the tree.

"AIY-AH!" Xena jumped from her position in the tree and landed on the death eaters.

"You sure got the drop on them," said Gabrielle as she came out from behind the tree.

Xena looked at her and said, "Come on. Let's see where they came from."

* * *

><p>The sun was beginning to set when they came to the edge of the forest, near a large field. Peeking through the trees, they saw more of the black-robed men gathered around a bon fire. Some of them were eating, drinking and laughing loudly. Others were sitting around as though bored. Near the edge of the field, well away from the fire, was a group of small tents.<p>

"This must be their camp," said Gabrielle.

"I don't understand these people," Xena said quietly. "There're no guards, no lookouts, it's as though they don't think they'll be attacked."

"At least it'll make things easier," said Gabrielle.

Xena rolled her eyes. "I'm gonna get a closer look. Stay here and don't get caught."

"But Xena…" Gabrielle tried to argue, but Xena was already gone.

Xena stayed near the trees as she snuck around until she was near the tents. Then she ran out and crouched behind one before she could be seen. Looking around the side, she was able to see the people around the fire more clearly. She recognized one of them as the woman from the village that attacked Gabrielle. She was one of the bored looking ones.

"How goes the translation?" Xena heard a high, cold voice coming from inside a tent near the one she was hiding behind.

_That's strange,_ Xena thought, _there's no light or silhouette coming from inside._

"I am making progress, my lord. Though I still haven't found the information you seek," said another, deeper voice.

"_Crucio!_" There was a scream, and the sound of someone thrashing around on the ground in pain. It only lasted a few seconds, and then it stopped, "You will not eat or sleep until you have found the scroll that I desire."

"Y-yes, my lord," said the other man.

There was a sound of a billowing cloak and the opening of a tent flap. Xena crawled around the side of the tent to get a look at the man that had just left the tent. Her eyes widened.

He was unnaturally thin and pale. He had only slits for nostrils and his eyes were red. Xena crawled back behind the tent before he could see her. She could hear his cloak slithering behind as he walked away.

When she was sure that the coast was clear, she snuck to the opening of the tent, pulled open the flap and stepped inside. Again she was surprised. On the outside, the tent appeared no bigger than an ordinary two or three person tent and barely high enough to stand in. On the inside, however, it was more than five times as big.

There were several shelves filled with books, a cot in one corner and a table in the center. There were dozens of scrolls on the table. They were aged and cracked at the edges as though they were thousands of years old.

The man reading through the scrolls had his back to Xena. Xena walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned slowly to stare up at her. Before he could react, she had him by the collar of his robes and threw him down on the ground. She bent down and shoved her fingers in each side of his neck.

"I've just blocked off the flow of blood to your brain. You'll be dead in thirty seconds. Or we could talk." She knelt down to look him in the eye as his nose started bleeding.

He nodded quickly. "Please, I'll tell you anything," he gasped out.

"Good," said Xena. She stood back up and grabbed one of the scrolls. "What does your master want that can be found in these scrolls?"

"One of them details the location of Ambrosia," he was clutching at his throat.

"Ambrosia, so he wants to become a god?" The man nodded.

Xena glanced at the scroll in her hand before speaking again, "How can you do the things that you do with those sticks?"

"We're wizards. We can do magic with our wands." His eyes were starting to roll back.

Satisfied, and irritated, she bent down and released the pinch before knocking him out with a punch to his jaw.

"This is bad," Xena looked up to see Gabrielle.

"I told you to stay."

"I got worried and came after you. I saw you sneaking into this tent," she said.

"Fine, since you're here, help me look through these scrolls. We can't let him find Ambrosia."

They both stepped over to the table and began reading the scrolls.

"Xena," said Gabrielle in a quiet voice. She put down the first one and picked up a second, "These are about you."

"And they're in your handwriting," said Xena.

"But how could they get these? I haven't written this many scrolls, and I have them all with me. And look at this one," she handed the scroll she was reading to Xena, "It says that you have a daughter named Eve. But Solan is the only kid you have."

Xena looked at the scroll with her mouth hanging slightly open. "What's going on here?" she asked quietly.

"Who are you?" Xena looked to the opening of the tent. There was a man with greasy black hair standing there, pointing a wand at them. He began firing spells at them.

"Aiy-ah!" Xena flipped over to him, dodging his spells, and kicked the wand out of his hand. She then spun around and kicked his feet out from underneath him. She grabbed him by his robes and raised her fist to strike. But she didn't.

"What's this?" she pulled something out of his robes, "It's another scroll."

She began reading through it. His eyes widened slightly, but he schooled his features before she saw.

"What does it say, Xena?"

"This is the scroll with the location of Ambrosia," she answered. "Why would you keep it and not tell your friends?" She grabbed his robes and pulled him up. He tried to struggle, but she was too strong.

"I don't have to tell you anything, _muggle_!" he spat back at her.

"Oh, you will talk, but not here."

She ripped two long strips off of his robes.

"What're you doing?" he asked angrily.

"You're coming with us. I have some questions I want answered." She grabbed his hands and began tying them tightly.

He tried pulling his hands away and kicking her off, but she slapped him across the face. Then she gagged him.

"Your friends are too drunk and too far away to hear you, anyway. But if you do try and get us caught, I'll tell your boss that you've had the scroll all along." He glared at her, but remained silent and docile.

"Take this," she handed the scroll to Gabrielle. "Pick up his wand, too. Keep them both on you at all times. Destroy them if it looks like you're about to get caught. Take him back to Argo and wait for me."

"Where are you going?" asked Gabrielle.

"I wanna meet this dark lord." She pulled back the tent flap to look outside, "The rest of them are still at the fire. Keep your head down and be quiet and you shouldn't draw attention."

"Be careful, Xena." Gabrielle hugged her quickly before letting go and turning to their prisoner.

She prodded him with her staff and they both left the tent. Xena waited for them to reach the forest before she left the tent.

Looking around, Xena saw one tent that was set apart from the rest, clear across the field.

* * *

><p>"You sent for me, my lord?" Bella stepped into the tent slowly.<p>

"Have Travers and Yaxley returned?"

"No, my lord. I believe they should have come back by now." She shuddered as the slightest twitch of anger appeared on his serpentine face. But then he smiled a cold, cruel smile.

"That is of no consequence. We have all but won the war. We will soon find the Ambrosia; I will gain godhood and no one can stop us."

"You didn't think this through very well." They both turned to the opening of the tent to see Xena standing there.

"That's her, the woman who stopped us!" Bella tried to raise her wand, but Xena was too fast. Bella was knocked out on the floor, and had her sword pulled on Voldemort in no time at all.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: <strong>I hope everyone liked this chapter. I liked writing it. I tried to do a good job of writing out what Xena would have done in the show, and how she would react in certain situations.

I hope Snape isn't too out of character in this chapter. I had to rewrite the part he was in because I made him way too passive originally, so I tried to fix it.

Also, I was able to put together a cover image. I hope everyone likes it.


	6. Something Old, Something Blue

**Something Old, Something Blue**

"How did you find this place? My death eaters were supposed to have sealed it off." Voldemort glared at the leather-clad woman.

"They're not the smartest or the most observant group. But then you can't really blame them. After all you hired them."

"I will make sure that you suffer before I kill you!" Voldemort began to reach out for his wand on the table.

"Go for that wand and I'll chop off an appendage! You're already missing a nose, so you'll have to guess which one it'll be." Xena jabbed her sword into his chest just enough to cut through his robes and not break the skin.

He looked down briefly at the sword. He then looked up into her blue eyes.

"I won't usually kill an unarmed opponent, so I'll make you a deal," said Xena, pulling the sword back slightly. "Stop your search for the Ambrosia and return to wherever it is that you came from, and I won't send you on a one way trip to Tartarus."

"What makes you so sure that we will do as you say?" he asked coldly.

"You wouldn't be in a position to refuse if I were to run you through, would you?" She jabbed him with the sword again. She smirked as she looked into his eyes, seeing the familiar arrogant glint that most criminals had when she came to bring them to justice. They all thought that they could beat her, and carry on with their wicked ways. But she knew them. She used to be one of them.

"Xena," she turned to look behind her. There was a soldier standing there, bowing his head slightly in respect.

"What?" Xena said, confused.

"This village is ours. We've rounded up all of the survivors, just as you ordered."

"I didn't…"

"Good, bring them to me." Xena's eyes widened in shock at the sound of her own voice, but it wasn't hers. It was uncaring, and malicious.

She turned around to see herself standing there, or someone that looked remarkably like her. She seemed highly pleased with herself. The other Xena walked outside. They were no longer in a field surrounded by tents. They were in a village, full of burning huts and dead bodies littering the ground.

"Here are the survivors, my Warrior Princess," Xena turned around and saw a soldier bowing to the other Xena. Behind him were more soldiers holding their weapons on a group of villagers. They were all burned, bleeding or dirty. Most of them were women and children.

"Friends," the other Xena addressed the villagers as the soldiers stepped aside so that she could see them all. "My soldiers will not harm you. In fact, you will have our protection from this moment on. You will be free to rebuild your village and never again live in fear of outsiders. In return, we ask only for a small tribute."

The villagers were all silent for a moment before a thin, shaky old man stepped forward and said in a hoarse voice, "What is it you ask of us?"

Xena stared at him as though amused. "I ask only that whenever my army is in the area, you donate a carriage filled with food and gold and any other valuable goods that you may possess, starting now."

"But we are simple farmers. We have nothing to give. It will take us years to produce enough crops to feed even ourselves."

She frowned at his words. "Very well then"

The old man looked confused. Then the other Xena unsheathed her sword. "_Kill them all_!"

She brought her sword down and sliced through the old man's neck. Before he had even hit the ground she had felled three more villagers.

"Stop!" Xena drew her own sword and charged at her doppelganger. Their swords clashed together and Xena kicked out at evil Xena. She dodged and rolled to the side. Xena spun around and swung at her head, barely missing. The other one lunged at her, and their swords met once more. Xena pushed with all her strength and the evil Xena fell down to the ground, Xena's sword at her throat.

"How could you?!" She cried out, breathing heavily. "You killed them all, even the children!"

The evil Xena laughed cruelly. "I did nothing. You killed them."

"What?" Xena looked up to see the dead bodies of the villagers and the soldiers standing there staring at her. She then looked down to find that the other Xena was gone, and her hands and sword were covered in blood.

"Xena!" one of the soldiers began chanting, soon followed by the rest. "Xena, Xena, Xena, Xena!"

Xena dropped her sword in horror and stared at her bloodied hands. "Noooooooo!"

"_Incarcerus!_" Xena felt thick ropes wrap around her, binding her arms. She opened her eyes to see herself surrounded by death eaters. There were no villagers, no soldiers. Then she heard Voldemort's cold laughter.

"What did you do to me?!"

"I merely used what was inside your own mind and turned it against you."

Xena looked up at him in anger and defiance as he knelt down next to her and whispered. "You will not stop the dark lord. Remember Lord Voldemort, because soon you will be praying to me for mercy." He stood back up. "Strip her of her armor and weapons and then take her to my tent. I will question her later."

Xena was lifted harshly to her feel, which were then bound the same way as her arms.

Everyone was silent as Mrs. Weasley set bowls of hot stew in front of them on the magically expanded table.

"Eat up, dear," she said to Malfoy when she set his bowl down. Vernon and Petunia eyed their bowls suspiciously. Dudley lifted a spoonful of stew to his face and sniffed it, before shoving the spoon in his mouth and tucking into the rest noisily. Fred nudged his twin and they both snickered at the robust teenager.

It wasn't until everyone was almost done eating that anyone got up the nerve to speak. Vernon looked around the table at all of the wizards and cleared his throat. "You people never actually told us why you are here or how long you'll be staying."

Mr. Weasley sighed and Mrs. Weasley glared.

"When we found Ron's note saying that Harry needed help, we became worried. We wanted to make sure he wasn't being mistreated," said Mrs. Weasley.

Petunia stared intently at her bowl, Vernon began sputtering, and the vein in his head was throbbing as usual.

"I'm finished," Harry said quickly, clearing his dishes and putting them into the sink.

"Me too," said Hermione. They were quickly followed by Malfoy and the Weasley children.

"That was incredibly awkward," said Hermione when they were out of the kitchen and on their way up the stairs to Harry's room.

"You don't have to tell me," said Harry as he opened the door.

"So have you looked over the ritual yet?" asked Ginny as she and her brother took their seats in the chairs they had conjured earlier.

"No, we haven't yet. We haven't quite figured out what we should do," answered Hermione.

"Shouldn't we finish Dumbledore's mission first?" asked Ron.

"What mission?" George asked.

"No, he's too desperate. Now that he knows what Dumbledore's been up to, he's going to do all he can to find the Ambrosia," said Harry.

"So we're going now?" asked Fred.

Harry looked at him. "What we? You're not coming. This is for me to finish," said Harry.

"No it's not. You can't do it alone," said Ginny. Harry was about to protest when he saw the determined look in her face.

"That's settled then," said Hermione, taking the bag up off the bed.

"No," said Harry.

"Harry, mate, you're outnumbered here. Do you really think you can stop us from coming?" Ron asked.

Hermione reached to the bottom of the bag and pulled out something wrapped in a blue cloth.

"What is that?" asked Ginny.

"I don't know." She unwrapped the cloth; inside was a sharp metal hoop covered in rust. "What is this?"

"Look on that rag," said Ginny. Hermione looked back at the cloth. There was writing in what looked like white chalk. It was smudged in places but still legible.

"Alright, we're gonna need some space." She waved her wand and everything in the room vanished.

"Oof!"

"Oh, sorry," she said as the Weasleys and Malfoy rubbed their bottoms from where they had collapsed on the floor.

"A little warning next time, Granger."

Hermione read the cloth again. "I need to make a circle while reciting this spell."

She walked to one side of the room and began chanting a strange spell. As she formed the circle with her wand, a light made of several bright colors remained. When she finished, the circle took up almost the entire room.

"That's more like an oval than a circle," said Ron. Hermione glared at him. That's when a surge of energy swept through the circle.

"What was that?" asked Malfoy.

"I don't know. It says that time will slow outside the circle," Hermione read over it again. Harry saw that the walls and the door and the light coming through his window began to blur and swirl.

"Now we need to hold onto something from the time we're headed to," said Hermione.

"This thing?" asked Ginny grabbing the hoop.

"I guess so," said Ron touching one side of it.

"It's not too late…" Harry began.

"Shut up!" everyone but Malfoy exclaimed.

"Once the circle's formed we've got to go through with it. We can't stop now."

"Fine then. Everyone grab hold." They all reached out to touch the hoop. It was a bit of a squeeze and it wasn't very comfortable.

"What's supposed to… ouch!" said Ron.

"What the Hell is that?!" asked Fred. The hoop began moving, turning slowly with all of their hands on it. Their arms were stretching and turning along with it.

"Wait, stop it!" cried Malfoy in pain.

"We can't," Hermione said through gritted teeth. Suddenly, a light appeared in the center of the hoop and it began turning faster and faster until they were all sucked through it.


	7. Not Easy

_**Not Easy**_

"Ow!" Joxer rubbed the back of his neck as he stooped down to retrieve his helmet. "Watch where you're falling next time; you could have dented my armor!"

"Sorry," he turned around to see a boy only a few years younger than he was, dusting himself off.

"Where did you come from anyway?"

"Oh, erm," he glanced upward briefly, "around."

Joxer took in the boy's appearance. He was clearly not from the area; he could tell from the boy's clothes. His hair was messy and black and he wore funny-looking pieces of metal on his face. The most unusual thing about him, though, was the scar on his forehead. It was like lightning.

"Just be more careful next time."

"Alright, I will." He seemed nervous. "I'm looking for some friends of mine; have you by any chance seen anyone else around in these parts?"

Joxer thought for a moment, his eyes turning upward as if trying to peek in his brain for an answer. "No, people don't usually hang around these woods. But there's a village a few miles from here. You might try looking there."

"Oh, well thanks anyway. Why are you out here, if you don't mind my asking?"

"I'm actually looking for some friends of mine too."

"All by yourself?"

"Well of course," he laid a hand on his sword sheath and posed proudly, "I'm a fierce warrior. Nothing in these woods can scare me."

"Harry!"

Joxer jerked around, clumsily unsheathing his sword, "Who said that?"

"Hermione?" he looked to see the girl running toward him, still holding the hoop. He ran up to her and hugged her tightly.

"Thank God you're alright."

"Where's everyone else?" asked Harry.

"Well isn't that sweet?" they both turned around to see Fred and George. Joxer was still holding his sword, shaking at the sudden appearance of the newcomers.

"Don't let Ginny see you getting all friendly with Hermione or you'll get a good hard kick in the…"

"Never again!" Malfoy was walking up, looking a good deal more disheveled than before. Ginny, Ron and Dudley were following behind him.

"What's wrong with him?" asked Harry.

"He's got his knickers in a twist because he forgot his hair grease at him and he's got a spot on his robes," said Fred, he and George snickering.

Malfoy glared at them. There wasn't just a spot on his robes. They were torn and covered in grime and twigs and leaves.

Dudley ran up to Harry, breathing heavily. "Where are we?"

"And who are you?" asked Ginny, looking at Joxer with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm Jox…" he cleared his throat and brought himself to his full height. "I'm Joxer, the Mighty!" he exclaimed loudly.

"Oh, well that's nice," said Hermione, stepping forward. "I'm Hermione and this is…"

"Hey, where'd you get that?"

"What?" she asked confused.

"That hoop, it belongs to Xena. It looks a little rusty but I'd recognize it anywhere!"

Hermione looked at the hoop in her hand. "This, we found it. We didn't know it belonged to anyone."

"It's Xena's chakram!"

"Who's Xena?" asked Harry, with more than a passing interest.

"She's one of my friends. You mean you didn't get it from her? Did something happen to her and Gabrielle?"

"W-we don't know," Hermione replied, looking around at her friends. "But we'd be glad to help you find them."

"What?" asked Malfoy.

Joxer looked worried. "They may need my help. I knew this day would come!"

He turned on his heel and began marching away. "Follow me!"

"Wait, how do you know where to find them?!" Hermione trailed off as he kept walking.

"Are we really going to follow this oaf just because he knows someone who may or may not be connected with the scrolls?" asked Malfoy.

"You caught onto that too did you?" said Harry. He began following, along with Hermione, Ron and Ginny. Dudley reluctantly trailed after.

"Well, we've got nothing better to do," said Fred and George in unison as they linked arms and began marching, mimicking Joxer.

Malfoy muttered a swear under his breathe. "Wait for me!"

* * *

><p>Xena sat in a chair, struggling against her bonds, but they were too thick. There didn't seem to be a knot anywhere; it was as if they twined around her and then melded together. They went<p>

"You're a stubborn muggle wench aren't you?" She looked up to see Voldemort standing there.

"If you're not going to say or do anything useful to me then go away. I'm busy."

Voldemort chuckled. "I may not kill you after all. I may just keep you and bring you out to entertain my death eaters."

"I've never been much fun at parties," she answered humorlessly.

He chuckled again and pulled out his wand.

"I'm surprised a man of your age can get that thing up at all."

"_Crucio!_"

Xena felt as if every nerve in her body was on fire. Her first instinct was to scream out from the excruciating pain he was inflicting on her. But she clenched her teeth and held it in. She didn't want him to have the satisfaction of hearing her scream.

"Remember, I am your master from now until I decide that you are of no use to me."

"Go to Tartarus," said Xena, panting slightly.

Voldemort smirked and pointed his wand again, repeating the spell. Again she didn't scream.

"You are more resilient than I expected."

"I've been through worse." Xena stared icily at him.

He smiled. "I am in no hurry. I will take my time breaking you. Oh, it would be much easier to search your memories myself, but it will give me great pleasure to see you put in your place."

Xena spat at him.

"You will learn to respect your betters," Voldemort said, bringing the back of his fist across her face.

Xena acted quickly. She kicked him hard in the stomach.

"Oof!" he exclaimed, doubling over. Xena wrapped her knees around his neck, squeezing to block off hi air supply. Gasping for air, he scratched at her legs trying to get them off of his neck.

"Stop moving or I'll break you, or more specifically I'll break your neck!"

He continued struggling and pointing his wand at her. However, only wisps of vapor came out.

"It's awfully hard to work your magic when you're running out of air, isn't it?"

As they continued their scuffle, Voldemort toppled over on top of her. With both of their weight and the force of the struggle, the chair tilted backward and onto the floor, breaking.

Xena released him, and then kicked his wand out of his hand. As he was trying to recover, she kicked him again in the stomach, and then across the head. He fell to the floor, out cold.

Xena wiggled out of the ropes and jumped to her feet.

"Did you really think it'd be that easy keeping me here?"

Just then, she heard shouting from outside the tent. She rushed outside and stopped dead in her tracks as the sound of a familiar screeching voice met her ears.

"How?" she asked herself as she watched the blonde woman gleefully plunge her sword into a death eater and then slicing through another.

****Author's Note****

Now I couldn't write a Xena crossover without including my favorite characters other than Xena and Gabrielle now could I?


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